Took a while for me to reply here, but I wanted to spend some time checking out all your recommendations. There's a lot to respond to here, but first a word about the terrain in these parts. Not sure what the New England or Vermont trails are like, but here there is very little really gnarly stuff on the ground. Roots (lots of them), round smooth rocks (occasionally), sand, beds of rounded gravel -- glacial deposits, basically -- with the rest being clay or loam. No sharp rocks or jagged gravel stones, no rock ledges and bedrock poking up (well, it's here, but I have to drive a long way to get to it -- not my daily ride). So really big rugged tires with tough sidewalls are probably overkill here, but would be good just for a bit more "suspension" on the hardtail. For traction....not needed.
So, Liam, I hear you that the "skinny" tires you mentioned are not for a serious bike, but the trails out our back door are smooth enough that they would actually work quite well. OTOH, some of those tires (Small Block 8, Ikon, Larsen, AKA) would clog with mud worse than my Bontragers, so would only work in the dry summer. But....I
could go with a lighter tire with more open tread and not worry about ripping open the sidewall.
I'm looking for a versatile tire that will do well in all seasons -- put it on and forget it. I don't race, so will sacrifice some weight and rolling resistance for better traction and shock absorption. Cornering grip is not the most important, as I don't carve corners at high speed (yet
), but I do value the grip of the side lugs on off-camber slopes and roots.
Now, about those tire recommendations:
Maxxis Ardent -- sounds like from what BW said, that they are not as versatile as I would like, if they pack full of mud and slip; no improvement over what I have, and would just add weight.
Toro -- if it's slow rolling, I'll pass. I still ride weekly on the rail trail just for cardio exercise, so would like to keep rolling resistance reasonable.
Ignitor -- sounds like it might work very well here. My daughter's bike has them on, and she likes them a lot. So far durability has not been an issue due to the lack of sharp rocks.
Geax -- hey Josh, I'm happy that you tried those and they're working well for you. I recall you weren't keen on them earlier this summer. My wife's bike has the Arrojo, which was replaced by the Gato, and they have been stellar -- she was with me last weekend when my Bontragers got choked with half-inch layer of mud, while her Geax still gripped fine, treads still poking through the glop. I wouldn't hesitate to put some of those on any of our bikes. One of our small local shops highly recommended the Sagauro -- he races and still has them on at this time of year...mud grip has been fine. The Gato looks like a winner too. Definitely in my top 3 list.
Kenda -- the Slant Six is the only one I would consider. Nevegal is slow rolling (according to others who know it well); SB8 and Karma have thin sidewalls; the former would pack with mud; the latter has the same tread pattern as my Bontragers, so I'm not interested -- time for something different. As for the Slant 6, I checked them out in our local shop yesterday, and the sidewalls are considerably thicker than any other Kenda I have seen. The knobs are well spaced and low profile for mud shedding, ramped for low rolling resistance, and siped for grip. They actually look very promising, and the shop guys were raving about them as an all-round great tire for our local area, and not just for racers. Here are some reviews that I found:
http://thebonebell.com/2011/05/06/review-kenda-slant-six/http://rock-racing.blogspot.com/2011/06/kenda-slant-six-review.htmlhttp://robonza.blogspot.com/2010/11/kenda-slant-six-tires.htmlSchwalbe -- the Nobby Nic is a great recommendation. Yes, they are expensive (almost as much as a car tire...yikes!), but apparently worth it. A friend who races DH, has these on his XC bike, and loves them. They are supposed to be a great all-round, all-season performer, and seem to have all the attributes I'm looking for. Goes into my top-three list.
Time to call some shops and see if I can get a pair ASAP before the snow flies. I want to get some rides in soon
Some may be hard to find -- Geax and Schwalbe -- but Slant 6 are in a shop about a two miles down the road. Will hit the phone tomorrow and see what else is available.
Guys -- thanks so much for your very thorough and helpful replies. Much appreciated, and I'll let you know what I end up with and how they perform for me.
Cheers,
Svend
PS -- we should start a tire swap page here on the forum....I've got a growing quiver of tires hanging from my garage wall that are little-used or brand new, some of which I would be happy to send to someone who can use them....free for a postage stamp....
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